Dishwasher



United States Patent 3,253,784 DISHWASHER Olan L. Long, Hilliard, and George P. Rogers, Galena, ()hio, assignors to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, Pin, a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Apr. 22, 1964, Ser. No. 361,749 4 Claims. (Cl. 239-101) This invention relates to domestic appliances, such as dishwashers, and particularly to means for driving these devices through diiferent cycles which, in the judgment of the user, are suflicient for completely washing loads of various characters.

Appliances of this nature are equipped with a timer, a device which when started will automatically and mechanically control the various steps in the washing operation so that after the dishes are stacked in the appliance and the timer is turned on the user may confidently give up further attendance on the machine and expect it to fill its tub with water, spray it over the stacked dishes, rinse them and drain the device. It is common practice to provide some means to start the device in operation at different points in the advancing cycle of operation of this timer which may be designated Pots and Pans, Normal, Single Wash and Double Wash. The user may thus be enabled to advance the timer, thereby eliminating some of the steps of the full washing cycle built into the timer. This curtailment of the full cycle is effected in diiferent manners as by rotating the timer dial or through the use of pushbuttons.

The object of this invention is to provide means to utilize the full capability of the dishwasher pump so that the user may not only curtail the timer steps, but also control the force and pattern of the washing operation and thereby have the use of a truly variable cycle dishwashing machine.

In accordance with this invention a device is provided, in the standpipe of the pressure plate, having a control which will permit restricting the opening for Water delivered to the distribution system to control the force of the water played over the load of dishes. In addition and in multiple distribution arm machines a control is provided to direct the regulated water to both or to either of the distribution arms. The utilization of these means permits the widest range of washing action of which the machine is capable. For example, heavy pots and pans, with baked on soils could be placed in the lower rack with the full flow of water directed to the lower arm so that the resultant increase in water pressure would give the machine the maximum scrubbing action of which it was capable. Both arms can be utilized for vigirous scrubbing action on heavy soils or any degree of gentle washing for lightly soiled or delicate china, through thus regulating the force of the water delivered by the pump. The upper arm alone, with gentle action, can be utilized for rinsing delicate stemmed glassware.

A feature of the invention is the economy effected in the savings in water usage in light washing operations where the water requirements for efiicient pump operation are-reduced as the output of the pump is restricted.

Another feature of the invention is a means for restticting the flow of water into one of said distribution arms without affecting the flow to the other whereby the effectiveness of the two arms, one compared to the other, may be adjusted to cope with any given type of load.

Another feature of the invention is the provision of means to adjust the water flow from the sprinkler water distribution arms for use over a Wide range from substantially a vigorous scrubbing action for heavily soiled pots and pans to substantially a gentle rinsing for lightly soiled delicate glassware. Such wide range is achieved in part by adjusting the relative proportions of the water ing on which one of said arms revolves so that the water flowing through openings in said bearing may be adjusted from complete shut-off to wide-open and this sleeve may be rotated by manual means placed at the disposition of the user.

The drawings consist of a single sheet having a single figure in the form of a schematic vertical section of a standpipe of a dishwashing machine showing how the various controls may be operated to play water over the stacked dishes from a heavy stream from both upper and lower distribution arms to a very light stream from either one or the other of said arms.

The apparatus is built upon the pressure plate 1 to the bottom of which the pump housing is aflixed in any conventional manner. The standpipe 3 is constructed in two parts, a semicylindrical or half shell part 31 integral with the pressure plate 1 and a removable part 32 to facilitate the construction of the device. The-standpipe 3 is therefore mounted on the pressure plate 1 in communication with a pump 33 conventionally mounted in the housing 2 so that the water pumped will pass upwardly to enter the lower distribution arm 4 or the upper distribution arm 5 from which it will be sprayed on the stacked dishes through the conventional orifices as indicated by the arrowheaded flow lines. The standpipe 3 is provided with three controls, 6, 7 and 8, respectively.

The lower control 6, rotated by a handle, not shown, serves to move a plate 9 to open wide or substantially to close the passage through'the standpipe to control the flow of water therethrough. The stem of the control rod 6 is rendered watertight as it passes through the side 31 of the standpipe 3 by an O-ring of appropriate packing material It Another rod 7, rendered watertight as it passes through the side 31 of the standpipe 3 by an O-ring 11, carries a cam 12. Upon rotation the cam 12 will move the valve 13 and its stem 14 upwardly so that when this valve meets the lips 15 of the rubber bellows 16 the flow of water upwardly to the arm 5 will be cut oil entirely. The upper termination 17 of the standpipe 3 is provided with a series of orifices 18 whereby the rising water may be delivered to the upper distribution arm 5. The orifices in the distribution arm are fashioned conventionally so that the arm will revolve about the longitudinal aXis of the standpipe.

The lower distribution arm 4 is placed near the top of the standpipe 3 and by water pressure revolves about the longitudinal axis of the standpipe. Water reaches the distribution arm 4 through orifices, such as 20, in the standpipe and orifices, such as 21, communicating there with throughan inner sleeve 22. This inner sleeve 22 is rotatable so that communication between the standpipe 3 and the arm 4 may be restricted or entirely out otf. The sleeve 22 is rotated by a cam or lever 23 attached to control rod 8.

The stem 14 of the valve head 13 is guided by a bearing 24 and may be moved upwardly or downwardly by the rotation of the cam 12 bearing on the plate 25 attached to the stem 14.

The sleeve 22 is provided with O-rings 26 and 27 to hold the sleeve in place and to render this connection watertight so that all water flowing from the standpipe to the arm 4 will have to flow through the matching orifices 20 and 21.

Thus with the valve head 13 in the position shown and the inner sleeve 22 positioned as shown there will be a full flow of wash water through both the upper arm 5 and the lower arm 4.

A retaining ring 28 serves to render the upper term-ination of the standpipe 3 and the rubber bellows 16 watertight.

What is claimed is:

1. In a dishwashing machine, a water pump having an output standpipe, a Water distribution means consisting of a pair of rotating arms mounted on said standpipe and communicating internally with said standpipe through orifices in said standpipe at the parts thereof constituting the bearings on which said arms rotate, said means being provided for spraying Water on stacked dishes, means to regulate the volume and pressure of water delivered by said distribution arms over a wide range from substantially a vigorous scrubbing action for heavily soiled pots and pans to substantially a gentle rinsing action for lightly soiled delicate glassware, said regulating means consisting in part of a means located in said standpipe for restricting the fiow of water therethrough and in part of means to adjust the relative proportion of water flowing thereafter through said arms, said last means consisting of a rotary sleeve in said standpipe at the point of communication between said standpipe and one of said arms having orifices therein, and means to adjust said sleeve to bring its said orifices into and out of register with the said orifices in said standpipe to provide wide-open to complete shutoff of said communication therethrough.

2. In a dishwashing machine, a water flow pump having an output standpipe, a water distribution means comprising rotating arms mounted on said standpipe and communicating internally wit-h said standpipe, and means to regulate the volume of pressure of Water delivered by said distribution arms over a wide range, said regulating means including first lmeans located in said standpipe between said pump and said arms to control, in modulating fashion, the total flow of water therethrough, and independent means in said standpipe between said first means and each arm to regulate, in modulating fashion, the volume of Water delivered to each arm independently.

3. In a dishwashing machine according to claim 2: said Water distribution means comprises a pair of rotating arms mounted one above the other on said standpipe for rotation about the axis of said standpipe.

4. In a dishwashing machine according to claim 3: said first means and said independent regulating means comprise manually controlled means for adjusting said total flow and the volume selectively delivered to each of said arms.

References Cited by the Examiner v UNITED STATES PATENTS EVERETT W. KIRBY, Primary Examiner. 

2. IN A DISHWASHING MACHINE, A WATER FLOW PUMP HAVING AN OUTPUT STANDPIPE, A WATER DISTRIBUTION MEANS COMPRISING ROTATING ARMS MOUNTED ON SAID STANDPIPE AND COMMUNICATING INTERNALLY WITH SAID STANDPIPE, AND MEANS TO REGULATE THE VOLUME OF PRESSURE OF WATER DELIVERED BY SAID DISTRIBUTION ARMS OVER A WIDE RANGE, SAID REGULATING MEANS INCLUDING FIRST MEANS LOCATED IN SAID STANDPIPE BETWEEN SAID PUMP AND SAID ARMS TO CONTROL, IN MODULATING FASHION, THE TOTAL FLOW OF WATER THERETHROUGH, AND INDEPENDENT, MEANS IN SAID STANDPIPE BETWEEN SAID FIRST MEANS AND EACH ARM TO REGULATE, IN MODULATING FASHION, THE VOLUME OF WATER DELIVERED TO EACH ARM INDEPENDENTLY. 